Pricing China's irrigation water

Sustainability: Transfer project cannot meet China's water needs

“…The problem is more a scarcity of management than of natural water 3 . Inefficient agricultural production consumes about 75% of the region's water and is growing rapidly.…”

“…In areas where cereal crops are flood irrigated, losses can exceed 50%. In addition, the lack of storage systems along the Yellow River means that farmers must use water when it is made available -not necessarily when they need it 3 .…”

“…Water should be supplied only at times when irrigation is necessary 3 . The rotation of wheat with higher-value crops that take less water to grow, such as peanuts, will also improve the efficiency of water use 10 .…”

The Economics of Sustainable Urban Water Management: the Case of Beijing

“…If the cost of using groundwater were higher than using rainwater, farmers would prefer to reduce the consumption of groundwater while increasing the consumption of rainwater. Enforcing a levy on groundwater could be one method to increase the cost and restrict the consumption of groundwater (Webber et al 2008). The Beijing Water Authority is the organization that should raise the cost for using groundwater by collecting a fee for groundwater use.…”

“…The decrease in consumption of agricultural water threatens the development of agricultural production, the ecological environment and the social stability of rural areas (Brown 2004;Wang and Wang 2005;Webber et al 2008;Yang and Zehnder 2001). Rainwater harvesting in rural areas of Beijing could effectively supplement the supply of irrigation water.…”